Before the clone war-clone story
by TheLord2507
Summary: The story of a clone squad before the battle war and how there attitudes change as the war starts and moves forward. Shows how the Clones are naïve and clueless about the danger of war.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first ever story as I have always wanted to write one about the Clones before the battle of Geonosis and the war. I would appriciate any and all feedback.**

**Chapter one.**

"Where are you going daroza?"

"Trying to push through sarge"

Stealth squadron was known for being efficient and invisible however if a training exercise required them to use brute force, then they were more than capable of doing so. Sargent Malason moved forwards towards the citadel with Cyrius and Loken either side of him. Anrod Claw and Nyras has pushed ahead on the right flank but were pinned down by droids surrounding their position. Tios and Ostura were also slightly ahead of the Sergeant but down the left flank. The principle was simple. 3 men punch through the middle until forced to stop by heavy fire, then 3 on each side flank until they are the focus then the middle penetrates again and continue. Usually works without a hitch only Daroza had broken formation. He had attempted to push across to the right flank and aide Claw, Anrod and Nyras however this meant he was ridiculously exposed and the left flank was collapsing. Malason swore under his breath, this should have been textbook training but it could be an embarrassment. "Orders sarge?" Said Loken. "Daroza!" He shouted "fall back to me" "but I'm..." He started. "That's an order!" Daroza quickly jumped behind the cover the others were using. "Cyrius reinforce the right flank we will cover then me and loken will take the left flank, Both groups will push and meet at the centre of the base of the citadel." " what about Daroza" said Loken. " remain here and provide cover until both groups are pushing forward then start to take out the tower defences." The troopers moved in sync not questioning there Sargent's orders. Malason moved quickly towards the left flank taking out 3 droids as he went and rolling for cover with Loken. "What's the plan sarge" said Tios, as he took down a droid on the far side of the battle grid. Malason turned and explained the plan to the 2 men. "Well shall we finish this then" said Ostura calmly. Malason looked over to the other group and nodded. "Let's go stealth squadron!" Malason dived forwards and fired three quick shots at a group of 4 droids closing on their position the first shot hit it's mark but didn't take the droid down the second hit another droid square in the chest, destroying it and the third bought the first droid down. Ostura took down another with his blaster before Tios dispatched the final one with his expert marksmanship skills. Loken had pushed on, taking down 2 more droids and another one operating a gun emplacement atop a tower. Tios slowly moved forward sniping any droids moving in from long range allowing the rest of his squad to take out any close and immediate threats. Daroza was doing a good job of providing cover fire and Malason could see that with just another well timed push the simulation would be won. He looked across to the other flank and could see Cyrius and Anrod taking out all droids that were a threat whilst Claw exercised his skills in close combat by dismantling the droids with his fists. He looked back at Daroza "Push forwards!" he yelled. Daroza smiled and started to plod forward, huge gun in hand cutting through enemy forces. The enemy forces fell into the trap, funneling towards the loud Daroza with the big gun resulting in them being surrounded by the Clones.

"I'd be lying if I didn't say I was disappointed with the start guys" said Malason. "However our comeback was superb" Malason and the rest of the squad were one of the oldest clone squadrons on Kamino and had a reputation for being one of the best squads in the clone army. "We did well to adapt to the situation and that has set the bar high for when we eventually face combat. Until that day let's keep proving we are the best the clone army has to offer. To stealth squadron!" "Stealth squadron!" Echoed the rest of the squad. The doors opened as Lieutenant Forak walked in to the barracks. "Attention!" said Malason as his squad stood up and saluted. "At ease men" said Forak calmly. "I would like to commend you on your exercise today. You performed excellently and your adjustment was superb." "why thank you sir" said Nyras Mockingly. Forak Laughed "one day you are going to anger the wrong person and get yourself killed Nyras." Malason smirked "if only." the clones all roared with laughter alongside there lieutenant a while longer before he pulled Malason to one side. " All the leading commanders have been summoned at 1900 hours tomorrow along with 2 lieutenants of their choice and 2 sergeants. I have picked you and sergeant Vex of course." Malason frowned. "Any idea what it is about" he asked. Forak pulled him further away from the laughing clones and lowered his voice to little more than a whisper. "There is a rumour that the army might finally be revealed to the republic and be used. According to high command there senators are debating whether or not to raise an army against an alliance called the separatists." Malason sighed "so we might finally be involved in a war." "we don't know for sure, but that is the rumour from the commanders, I will see you tomorrow evening."

Malason knocked on the door of Havoc squadron and found Sergeant Vex standing there. "Yeah, yeah give me a minute." Malason smiled "Are you sure you ever learnt to tell the time Vex?" Vex shot him a dirty look as he put the last bits of his armour on. "Very funny."

"I take it Forak told you the rumour that is going around" said Vex as the remaining clone officers filed in. "of course he did, not sure what to make of it though. We have no idea what these separatists are like or how many of them there are." replied Malason. "Neither am I. not to mention the fact that judging by the amount of stars in the sky there are more than a handful of climates we will have to fight in." They both fell silent as Lama Su entered the room with Jango fett close behind. " I'm sure many of you are wondering why you have been summoned today." began the prime minister. " but it is necessary to inform you of the future of the clone army and it's imminent use" the clones instantly began whispering, did this mean the republic needed the clones to fight a war for them? Lama Su cut through the conversation with his icy tone "The Jedi Syfo Dyas is expected here within the next planetary rotation to inspect the army. With his arrival it is likely that the separatists will learn of our existence and launch an attack on the republic leaving them with no choice but to respond with military action involving us." Lama Su paused and looked around the room at the officers. "I will now hand you over to Mr Fett who will explain what we will be doing to prepare" he said stepping backwards and allowing the bounty hunter to step forward. "Thank you prime minister." he said as he stepped forward. It had been a while since he had been seen by the clones and there was suspicion that he had made his way into the inner core in an attempt to influence the senate taking the clone army. "We must prepare the forces for war on any planet as we do not know where we will be called to or when we will be required to fight. It could be tomorrow or it could not be for another decade but it is most likely that it will be soon. Due to this fact we will be sending certain clone forces into orbit to prepare for an imminent conflict with the droid army." more whispering amongst the clones. So it was droids they would be fighting against. Would they be the same type they had trained against? Who would be selected to be sent into orbit? The second question was answered immediately by Jango Fett. "The first 4 commanders that are to prepare there troops will be Commander Bly, Commander Ponds, Commander Wolffe and Commander Gree. You four wil be loaded onto ships tonight and it will start in an hour. Please go now and gather your troops. Commander Fang, Commander Neyo, Commander Jet and Commander Bacara will start at 0900 hours tomorrow. Dismissed." the clone officers all remained accept for the ones who had an hour to prepare for there departure. Vex and Malason walked down towards Forak and there Commander Fang. " Vex! Malason! How are my two best sarge's doing?" said Fang in a positive tone as he saw them approaching. " very good sir" said Malason "since we are finally getting to be used in true combat." Fang smiled "yes it feels good to know that our purpose will finally be fulfilled. I am glad that we will be one of the first units to be deployed in this war and i only hope that we can make a difference in the upcoming war." Forak nodded " we should go and inform the troops of what is happening" Fang nodded "yes I will see you and Vex in the morning" him and Forak walked away leaving Vex and Malason at the front of the massive room amongst hundreds of other clone officers all conversing about the new orders they have received. "We need to tell our men the new orders for tomorrow" said Vex. "my squads barracks in 10 minutes" replied Malason. "See you there."

Malason opened the door and walked into his squad's room. "Everyone up!" he yelled causing Anrod,Tios and Ostura to sit bolt upright in there beds. Cyrius was still up along with Claw and Daroza. Malason looked around "wheres Loken and Nyras?" he asked. "Gone for a walk" said Claw. "how was the meeting?" Malason sat down."Vex's squad will be here in a minute where we will tell everyone what happened at the meeting." As if on cue Vex walked into the room with his squad behind him. "Shall we get started" said Vex. Malason sighed, "we have to wait for Loken and Nyras to get back before we…" The door opened and Nyras and Loken stumbled in both breathing heavily. "What happened?" said Anrod. "Jedi." said Loken. "There is a Jedi in the city"


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the Views on the first chapter it is very much appreciated. I had been writing this for a while now and got up to what I think will probably be the end of Chapter 3 which is why this chapter is out so quickly. Again feedback would be fantastic as I really dont know how good this stuff is and would like to make changes if things are not working to make it not only more enjoyable to write but more enjoyable to read!**

There was not a single clone who had not heard of the legendary Jedi Knights in some form or another. They had been the closest things to a bedtime story the clones of Kamino had ever had. They had came into knowledge when someone asked the serious and cold figure of Jango Fett who the toughest opponent he had ever faced or fought with had been. It had been the first time any clone could remember seeing him smile as he explained the power and abilities of a Jedi knight. The story had been told thousands of times by thousands of clones and they had become more powerful each and every time. Malson had heard a cadet describing the Jedi as a huge warrior 40 foot tall with wings and fangs but that was not even close to the way he had heard it. Warriors of discipline and mystery but firm power. Jango had described them to a group of clones who grew up to be leading commanders as all out warriors who were invincible to all unless very skilled. It was the weapon that had captured the minds of many as few believed that one could defeat many warriors with only a melee weapon. The legend of the Lightsaber had grown with the legend of its master. One thing that always remained a mystery was whether Jango was fighting with one or against one.

"We were walking down around the outer city along by landing platform 17 when a fighter landed and a man got out." said Loken as the other clones surrounded him and Nyras. "He was dressed in robes so we thought he was just some guy but when we came down the east corridor we saw him and he had one of those weapons Jango told us about." Vex leaned forward "he had a lightsaber?" Nyras nodded, "he definitely had one." Malason stood up "lets go Loken" he said as he put on his helmet and picked up his Dc-15A blaster. "Where are you going" asked Ostura. " if we are going to be involved in the war we need to make an impression but we also need to find out what he is actually here for without him noticing us. 2 troopers will go unnoticed by the kaminoans but if there are any more we not be able to find anything out." Daroza stood up "But why does it get to be you two?" he questioned. Everyone could feel Malason's cold stare through his helmet. "Because I am in charge Daroza."

Loken and Malason made there way down the corridor making there way towards the prime ministers office. "I can hear voices sir" whispered Loken to Malason. He nodded as he started to distinguish the voices. The computers came into view where the cadets were working. "Oh yes it is essential otherwise a mature clone would take a lifetime to grow, now we can do it in half the time" said the prime minister from around the corner. Loken and Malason stopped and pressed themselves against a section of the wall where there was no window hoping that they were not noticed. " I see" said an unknown voice that sounded closer. "They are totally obedient," said the prime minister much closer now, "Taking any order without question. We modified there genetic structure to make them less independent then there original host." with that the prime minister came into view alongside his assistant and… the Jedi. Malason held his breath. So this is what they were like. The legendary warriors who they would fight with had finally come to take the army under there wing. He did not look like much but Malason knew looks could be deceiving. The weapon on his belt was the thing that Malason was the most fascinated by. What kind of weapon was it? How did it work? How many of them were there? The jedi paused for a second and turned his head slightly. The Kaminoans were watching the 28th battalion eat and so did not notice but Malason and Loken stayed completely still. Would they be destroyed by this legendary warrior for disobeying orders? The jedi simply smiled and moved on. "And who was the original host" he asked continuing down the hallway. " a bounty hunter named Jango Fett" replied the prime minister there voices becoming distant as they walked down the corridor.

Malason and Loken looked at one another and laughed. "A jedi." said Loken "there is a Jedi on Kamino" Malason nodded "and he is not a murderous cold Kaminoan." they began to walk back to the barracks and when they arrived they were peppered with questions about the Jedi. "Wait, wait, wait." said Anrod shaking his head after Loken had described the appearance of the Jedi. "You are telling me that these mighty warriors look just like us?" Malason laughed, "what were you expecting? A nine foot tall monster with huge teeth and eight arms?" "Honestly" replied Anrod "That's exactly what I was expecting."

When Malason awoke the next morning there was feelings of excitement filling his entire body. They would finally be fighting in the glorious war for the Republic. Stealth squadron was in the mess hall by 0715 ready for loading at 0900. The Hall was very empty as even the other units that were due to start loading at 0900 would most likely not be up till 0800, but Malason wanted his squad ready as soon as possible and wanted to be the first clones on a ship to the war. The clones had been discussing the war and all the heroic feats they would accomplish on the field of battle for about ten minutes when Ostura, who had been silent and fidgety all morning said what was on his mind. "Does this not bother any of you?" he blurted out after Daroza had finished a story of him taking on 2 two hundred enemy warriors with nothing more then 2 pistols and a knife. Claw looked at him in confusion "Does what not bother any of us?" Ostura looked nervous for perhaps the first time in his life, "Fighting for someone who we don't know for reasons we don't know against someone we don't know! We are being plunged into a war we know nothing about because we are told it's the honourable thing to do? We just believe the Kaminoans for the first time?" The other clones looked around at one another. "You forget" said Anrod "Jango also told us about the glories of war and conquest he has shown us the honour of battle" the other clones nodded in agreement. And cleared away there stuff. Malason sat there with Ostura for a moment. "I understand your concern, but has Jango ever led us wrong?" Ostura sighed and stood up. "I suppose you are right sir. Jango would never betray us with lies."

The rest of the morning was taken up by preparations for the departure of the clone army from Kamino. Stealth squad found themselves very busy in there preparations for war as all their equipment was checked and scrutinised by the Kaminoens. The entire squad had made small modifications to there armour for easier movement, more comfort and better protection, despite the fact that many clones had been terminated for doing the same thing. Malason and his men managed to get away with it and by 0830 were climbing up the ramp of an Acclamator-class assault ship. Malason looked back at his squad with pride. Loken was right behind him following his every move as his corporal,acting as his second in command, Claw stood close behind, his DC-15S hanging from his hip and a small knife coming from the top of his hand that he had managed to get from a Clone Commando. Daroza had his huge Z-6 rotary cannon over his shoulder walking alongside the second heavy weapons trooper, Cyrius with his DC-15LE and bag full of Thermal Detonators. Both Tios and Anrod had there DC-15A's in their arms with Tios checking his adjustments that allowed him to be a better sniper and marksman. Anrod had modified his to be stronger and do more damage at a shorter range whilst Nyras and Ostura had no modifications to there blaster's but had made it so that there armour was the most flexible out of there squads. Nyras walked in the centre of the group, his medic pack over his shoulder, laughing and joking, mainly at Daroza's expense, but Ostura walked in the rear of the group in silence. This was not unusual as Ostura had always been very somber and silent yet efficient, but the outburst this morning worried Malason about his state of mind. The squad reached the top of the ramp to find Commander Fang waiting alongside Captain Soldi and Captain Fidele. Malason was a Sergeant major in charge of nine clone officers with his immediate orders coming from Lieutenant Forak who was in charge of 3 other Sargeants. His rank of Major meant he was elevated above the other 3 in the same way Loken was to the rest of his squad being Forak's second in command. Forak reported, along with three more Lieutenants to Captain Soldi who in turn reported to Commander Fang who was in charge of the 250th clone battalion. The 250th Clone battalion was a part of the 160th regiment which was also under Commander Fangs control giving him the rank of Regimental Commander and Battalion Commander at the same time. He then reported to the Clone Senior Commander in charge of the 77th legion; Commander Malgun. Fang had command over three other captains being Captain Fidele, Captain Urial and Captain Ionas all of whom led their own companies. Although Fang had never admitted it, Captain Soldi's Avenger company was considered his favorite and best. "Sargeant Malason, early as usual I see?" said Fang in an amused tone. "Just wanted to be ready for War sir" replied Malason. Fang nodded "even though we are all clones I do wonder how you and Soldi are so similar." before Soldi could say anything, Captain Fidele stepped in "Don't disrespect Malason like that Commander, he's not that bad" they all laughed at this and Captain Soldi gave Fidele a death stare before he embraced Fidele with a smile. It was well known that the two Captains shared a very close bond with one another and nothing could break it.

The squad had found there sleeping quarters without a problem and had everything ready by the time the rest of the squads started to arrive. The ship they were on would be shared by 16 battalions making a total of 4 regiments and about 10 thousand clones on board. This was a full strength of the 77th legion and it was clear to all of the men that this Acclamator class assault ship was a battle ready army.

Malason found Ostura in the 4th mess hall which was the mess hall the furthest from their sleeping quarters and was reasonably quiet. Malson sat down opposite him and waited. Ostura looked up from his food and sighed. "I'm sorry sargeant, I just had to be alone to think about everything for a while" Malason shook his head "Don't apologise Ostura I understand that this is confusing for all of us. You have always been the most analytical of the squad, looking at every possibility and every available option before making a decision. You have never been like Daroza who charges in with no thought of safety or orders nor are you like Loken who is loyal to a fault and would follow me into anything if I told you too. It is good to have that balance in the squad and I would not trade a single one of my men for another." Ostura nodded "I just feel like this is all happening very fast and that the commanders might not be looking at all the options. It could result in us charging in unprepared." "That will not happen brother." Malason sighed before continuing "I believe that this war worries you due to you not being able to look at it for yourself and make a judgement. You have only been told what it is like and so you feel out of control. I assure you Ostura this feeling will pass when we are fighting for the Republic." Ostura nodded and stood up "thank you sir, I feel much better" Malson stood up with him and they made there way to the exit "It's ok Ostura. We have all been waiting for this for a very long time brother. Let's hope we can win this war."

After 3 more hours aboard the Acclamator class star destroyer there was more news that sent the Clone troopers into a frenzy. The majority of Stealth squad was in Vex's sleeping quarters talking with their squad about the inevitable battle along with a handful of members from the other 2 squads in there company including the other 2 sergeants; Cybor and Alvai. Malason was talking to Alvai about what type of terrain and they hoped to be fighting on, in the first battle when Lieutenant Forak walked in wearing his full armour except for his helmet which was at his side. "Everyone!" he yelled as he stopped in the centre of the room. "The leader of the Jedi is here to take full command of the clone army." the clones looked at each other in excitement and wonder. "The Jedi have launched a rescue mission on the desert planet of Geonosis but are heavily outnumbered and outgunned. It is our job to reinforce them and destroy the Seperatist forces there. This cruiser will be one of 20 sent to aid the Jedi and we will be led by the Jedi Grand Master Yoda." Forak looked around at the clones in the room "from now on we will be known as the Grand Army of the Republic."


	3. Chapter 3

**Had a lot of fun writing this chapter as the clones experiance there first taste of real warfare. Same as the first 2 I welcome any advise and critism. This is the latest part I have written and I am welcome to any ideas for future chapters and where you want the story to go. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writin it**

Battle of Geonosis.

Malason checked his blaster again as his squad made there way to the main hangar ready for war. He had spent 10 minutes with his squad looking over every piece of information about Geonosis from its climate to its natives to its history with the Seperatist alliance. He was not looking forward to the flying bug people and he hoped that the wind did not kick up a sandstorm. He made his way to a LAAT gunship and got onboard. Vex's squad was already on board as was Lieutenant Forak. The gunship to there right contained the other 2 squads from there platoon as well as Captain Soldi. The Cruisers had come out of Hyperspace 10 minutes earlier and the first wave had launched. The 77th legion was part of the second wave meant to launch an attack on the droid factories after the first wave had rescued the Jedi and created a staging area. The Gunship doors closed and the Gunship launched out towards the barren wasteland of Geonosis where the clones would begin to understand the nature of War.

The clones stood motionless as the LAAT descended through the atmosphere and nearer to the battlefield. Forak nodded to Vex and Malason "lets go boys." he said as the red light turned on in the gunship. They all readied their weapons and waited for the gunship to stop. They could feel the firepower from the enemy now, shaking the gunship from side to side, the noise was deafening and there was more than one explosion as a LAAT was brought down by the heavy weapons of the enemy. The lights turned green and a second later the door's opened on the desert world of Geonosis. All the troops jumped out ready for action. The battlefront seemed to go on forever and about a mile away to the west a sea of droids advanced firing thousands of blaster bolts at the entrenched clone army. The rest of the Platoon had safely made it to the landing site and Forak called them in to him. "I want us ready to move out as soon as possible." he yelled over the gunfire "Lieutenant Edut of Fidele's company is sending out 12 BARC speeders to scout another way around there lines to hit them from the side and flank them" the Platoon nodded and began to help the Entrenched forces hold the position. Malason helped Loken and a 327th star corp clone set up a heavy sentry gun in a dug out position. He realised that holding the trench was not the plan and the intent was to attack and cripple the droid forces but that the Commanders did not intend to needlessly throw the men over the top for no reason. Malason wondered when the Jedi would get here and what fantastic new tactics they would bring. The droid army was closing ground and it was beginning to look dangerous after about 5 minutes until Forak returned. "Malason round up the men we have a small ridge down the southern side that we will traverse and use to flank the droid army" Malson nodded and went to round up the men. He found the whole platoon and returned to find Forak standing completely motionless, looking at the on coming droid forces. "We are all here sir. How are we getting to the Northern ridge?" Malson could sense the rage that Forak was attempting to conceal in his voice. "Change of plan" he said as a voice came over all the helmets of the clones. "All clone units charge the droid army!" yelled the voice. Malson could tell it was no clone and further up the line he saw the clones marching over the top towards the enemy with a few Jedi holding there legendary lightsabers in front of them deflecting any shot that attempted to kill them. The rest of Malason's squad turned and went over the trench, firing at the enemy droids. Malason could see the AT-TE's making there way forward firing there heavy guns at the Droid forces causing huge explosions. Malason realised that only one clone from the Platoon was not moving and was staring straight at him. Ostura stood still and looked up at his Sergeant. "Come on brother" Said Malason as he ran moved forwards over the trench firing his blaster into the enemy. Ostura followed him uttering one last thing before opening fire on the droid army. "Charging in unprepared" he said as he moved forward against a wall of gunfire.

Malason moved forward, crouching low and firing his weapon at the enemy without knowing if any of his shots was even hitting the droid army ahead of him. Thousands of Droids fell under the barrage of fire from the republic but Malason could see that Clones were also falling under the heavy fire and he could see hundreds of dead clones on the floor. Malason passed 2 clones in heavy armour who he could see were both Clone Commandos. They had received more training than anyone else and yet they had fallen within the first hour of the war. Malason continued on and began to realise that on this desolate desert with no cover training meant nothing and survival was due to luck and nothing else. Malason kept firing at the oncoming droid army before a LAAT gunship dropped off an AT-TE next to him. Malason watched as the doors opened and 2 squads of clones exited along with Lieutenant Forak. Forak approached Malason whilst firing at the droid forces. "Round up the platoon" he said over the comlink to all four of the squads "We have a droid factory to destroy." 2 LAAT gunships swept down and landed behind the AT-TE. Malason jumped aboard followed by Nyras, Claw, Anrod and Cyrius. Anrod was being supported by Nyras as he had clearly been hit hard in the leg by a blaster bolt and Claw had a nasty gash across his shoulder. 14 more clones got on board the LAAT with Vex and Alvai being among them. 3 of them had minor injuries and 2 of them, like Anrod, had crippling injuries that would put them out of action for the rest of the battle. It was clear that the morale among the soldiers. Sergeant Cybor climbed aboard and nodded to Malason as the LAAT took off. "Lose anyone?" questioned Cybor. "Not that I am aware of" replied Malason as he turned on his comlink to Loken. "Loken, Status report on the clones with you." Loken immediately replied "I'm fine sir and so is Ostura and Tios. Daroza has been hit in the chest but he seems fine except for some bruising due to the hit being a glancing one." Malason was relieved. "Thank you Loken" Malason turned back to Cybor. "My squad has a few injuries but no casualties," he said. Cybor nodded "I lost Lighter and Brawl." he replied with a tone of sorrow. Malason placed his hand on Cybor's shoulder, "I am sorry brother, let us hope we can avenge them and beat this droid scum" Cybor embraced Malason "thank you brother. Let's win this battle." Forak called for silence as he began to explain the plan. A hologram was brought up of the clones in the second gunship and Malason counted 13 overall with 2 being severely injured giving the whole platoon a number of 28 clones including Forak with 5 clones being seriously injured and 4 clones being dead. Forak raised his voice and began. "The droid factory we are assaulting has 3 main points of entry being the main entrance to the west, the landing platform to the north and the small and secret entrance to the East. We will be coordinating this assault with a unit of Four commandos already inside the Factory. They have set charges on some key areas but have requested assistance due to intelligence that a droid battalion will be using this as a staging area for an assault on our flank. We will take this base and use it to counter attack this battalion and strike against them." "Who is assaulting where sir?" asked Alvai? "Your squad along with Vex's will be causing a diversion at the Main entrance whilst Malason's squad infiltrates the secret entrance and Cybor's squad will attack and hold the Landing platform until reinforcements arrive." Cybor nodded "How are we getting to the platform? I don't suppose you think that we are just going to land on it and take them all out?" Forak shook his head "The landing pad is near enough to a rock face that is concealed and uneven enough that you and your squad can climb it." Cybor let out a short harsh laugh "We wouldn't want this too be easy would we?" Some of the clones chuckled at this and Malason could sense the clones becoming more settled and less shocked to do with the current horror of war. Forak nodded "We need to make sure that we coordinate between the groups and that we-" Forak was cut off as the sound of an explosion came over the hologram. Loken's voice came over the hologram, yelling over the sound of the falling LAAT. "We are hit! I repeat we are hit! Going down over the ridge! Location-" The hologram went dead with impact of gunship on the surface destroying the communications. Malson looked at Forak, his face pale with fear for his men. Forak stood still unable to move. The entire Gunship seemed silent, the gunfire outside seemed far away, like a dull rumour of some other war. Only Nyras seemed to be able to talk "Pilot!" he yelled "Set us down on the ridge at the last known place of the other gunship. Now!" Malason could hear the desperation in his voice but knew that acting on emotion would only get them all killed. "Cancel that order." he said quietly, through the comlink knowing that everyone in the gunship could hear him. Nyras whipped his head around to look at his Sergeant "But sir they-" "Are some of the strongest and most skillful soldiers I know and if anyone can survive that crash and get to the factory it's them." said Malason. "We have a mission Nyras. I would expect them to do the same." Malason looked out to the barran hellhole that was Geonosis. "They are on their own."


End file.
